Iran shuts down internet amid mass protests against regime and calls for monarchy to return
The Ayatollah's regime has faced widespread protests including those calling for a return of the Shah
Iran's regime has cut off the country's internet access amid mass protests against their government and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei.
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CloudFlare, an internet firm, and the advocacy group NetBlocks reported the internet outage, both attributing it to Iranian government interference.
Attempts to dial landlines and mobile phones from Dubai to Iran could not be connected - with such outages attributed in the past being followed by intense government crackdowns.
People in Tehran shouted from their homes and rallied in the street after a call by the country's exiled crown prince for a mass demonstration, witnesses said.
It was a new escalation in the protests that have spread nationwide across the Islamic Republic which overthrew the monarchy in 1979.
The protest represented the first test of whether the Iranian public could be swayed by crown prince Reza Pahlavi, whose fatally ill father fled Iran just before the country's 1979 Islamic Revolution.
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Demonstrations have included cries in support of the shah, something that could bring a death sentence in the past but now underlines the anger fuelling the protests that began over Iran's ailing economy.
Thursday saw a continuation of the demonstrations that popped up in cities and rural towns across Iran on Wednesday.
More markets and bazaars shut down in support of the protesters.
So far, violence around the demonstrations has killed at least 41 people while more than 2,270 others have been detained, said the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency.
The growth of the protests increases the pressure on Iran's civilian government and its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
It remains unclear how Mr Pahlavi's call will affect the demonstrations moving forward.
Mr Pahlavi had called for demonstrations at 8pm local time (1630 GMT) on Thursday and Friday.
When the clock struck, neighbourhoods across Tehran erupted in chanting, witnesses said.
The chants included "Death to the dictator!" and "Death to the Islamic Republic!".
Others praised the shah, shouting: "This is the last battle! Pahlavi will return!".
Thousands could be seen on the streets.
"Great nation of Iran, the eyes of the world are upon you. Take to the streets and, as a united front, shout your demands," Mr Pahlavi said in a statement.
"I warn the Islamic Republic, its leader and the (Revolutionary Guard) that the world and (US President Donald Trump) are closely watching you. Suppression of the people will not go unanswered."
Mr Pahlavi had said he would offer further plans depending on the response to his call.
His support of and from Israel has drawn criticism in the past - particularly after the 12-day war Israel waged on Iran in June.
Demonstrators have shouted in support of the shah in some demonstrations, but it is not clear whether that is support for Mr Pahlavi himself or a desire to return to a time before the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Iranian officials appeared to be taking the planned protests seriously.
The hard-line Kayhan newspaper published a video online claiming security forces would use drones to identify those taking part.
Iranian officials have offered no acknowledgment of the scale of the overall protests, which raged across many locations on Thursday even before the 8pm demonstration.
However, there has been reporting regarding security officials being hurt or killed.